Railroad-car brake.



G. H. HOWARD 61; H. M. PFLAGER.

' RAILROAD GAB. BRAKE.

APPLIQATION FILED APR. 11, 1910.

1,010,496. A Patented Dec.5,1911.

COLUMBIA PLANOGRAMI 11., WASHINGTON. I:v c.

' UNITED STATES PAT NT OFFICE.

CLARENCE H. HOWARD AND HARRY PFLAGER, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNORS TO DOUBLE BODY BOLSTER COMPANY, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

RAILROAD-GAR BRAKE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 5, 1911.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, CLARENCE H. How- ARD and HARRY M. PFLAGER, citizens of the United States, residing at St. Louis, in the State of Missouri, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Railroad-Car Brakes, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates particularly to the brake-cylinder and those parts of the air brake-gear which are usually attached to the car body and connected by the main pull-rod to the other parts of the said gear carried by the car truck-frame, by which arrangement in applying the brakes to the car-wheels, the truck is drawn toward the cylinder and causes undue stress on the center-pins and other affected parts of the car.

The subject matter of our present invention is an improvement on the invention disclosed in an application for patent filed by us April 9th, 1910, Serial No. 554,350 and the particular object of this invention is to generally improve the construction forming the subject matter of the application above referred to, and to attach the cylinder push rod and the hand brake rod of the brake gear directly to the main pull lever, and which hand brake rod is in direct alinement with the cylinder push rod, in order that the power transmitted to the main pull lever is applied at substantially the same point by both the cylinder push rod and hand brake rod.

The invention consists in features of novelty as hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawing forming part of this specification, whereon,

Figure 1, is a top plan view of a sixwheeled car-truck having an air brake-cylinder attached thereto and representing diagrammatically parts of the air brakegear arranged according to our invention in connection with the push-rod of the cylinder and with the other parts of the said gear usually carried by the truck-frame for applying the brakes to the car-wheels; Fig. 2, a vertical longitudinal section therethrough to enlarged scale on line 2, 2, in Fig. 1.

Like letters and numerals of reference denote like parts in all the figures.

Referring toFigs. 1 and 2, a represents a six-wheeled car truck-frame, from a member of which, preferably an outside transo-m 1, projects a horizontally arranged bracket 2' having suitable strengthening ribs 2 which with the bracket 2 are preferably integral with the member 1, the bracket 2 .being adapted on its top side for the attachment thereto by bolts 3 of the ordinarily equipped brake-cylinder Z) of the car air brake-gear, the bolts 3 passing vertically through the bracket 2 and through the flanges 1 formed along the bottom of the cylinder 6 as shown.

The push-rod 5 of the brake-cylinder b is coupled at its outer end between the transom or member 1 and the corresponding end member 6. of the truck-frame a to the upper end of a vertically (or therelabout) arranged main pull-lever 7 to the lower end of which is coupled the inner end of a pull-rod 8 having its outer end connected with the brake-bea1n '9 for applying the brakes to the corresponding end wheels 10 of the car-truck, while to the main pull-lever 7 midway between its connections with the push-rod 5 and pull-rod 8, is coupled one end of the pull-rod 11 10 respectively, of the car truck in the equalizer 12, and the latter by the pull-rods 13 and 14 with the brake-beams 9 and 9 of the middle and other end wheels 10 and 10 respectively, of the car truck in the usual well-known manner.

For applying the brakes to the wheels by the ordinary hand brake-gear carried by the car body, the main pull-lever 7 is coupled at its upper end conjointly with (or adjacent to) its'connection with the outer end of the push-rod 5 of the brake-cylinder b, to the corresponding end of a horizontally arranged rod 15 which connects with the ordinary hand brake-gear (not shown) on the car body, whereby, the main pull lever 7, the cylinder push-rod 5 being free, is moved by the hand brake-gear in the same direction for pulling on the rods 8, 13, and 14:, and thereby applying the brakes to the wheels 10, 10, and 10 as in the case of the air brake-gear.

In the above arrangement, by applying the push-rod 5 of the brake-cylinder band the hand brake-rod 15 directly to the main pull-lever 7 and so reducing the number of parts, the construction of the brake-gear is simplified and rendered more positive in operation.

By our invention, the attachments of the brake-cylinder and combined parts of the air brake-gear are transferred from the car body to the car trucks and the car body thereby relieved from their weight and operating stresses.

What we claim as our invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a railroad car brake, the combination with a brake cylinder and the cylinder push rod of a floating main pull lever pivotally connected at one end to the cylinder push rod and a hand brake rod in direct alinement with the cylinder push rod, and which brake rod is pivotally connected to the main pull lever adjacent the point of pivotal connection between the cylinder push rod and the main pull lever.

2. In a railroad car brake, the combination With a brake cylinder and the cylinder push rod of a floating main pull lever pivotally connected at one end to the cylinder push rod, and a hand brake rod in alinement with the axis of the cylinder push rod, and

cylinder fixed to the bracket, a floating main pull lever pivotally connected at one end to the push rod of the cylinder and a hand brake rod pivotally connected to the main pull lever occupying a position in direct alinement with the axis of the cylinder push rod and a pair of pull levers pivotally connected to said floating pull lever.

4. In a railroad car, a truck-frame, a bracket integral with the said frame, a brakecylinder of the car air brake-gear attached to the said bracket, a floating lever one end of which is pivotally connected to the pushrod of the said cylinder, and means for connecting the opposite end of said lever with the pull-rods of the said gear.

5. In a railroad car, a truck-frame, a bracket integral with the said frame, abrakecylinder of the car air brake-gear attached to the said bracket, a floating lever one end of which is pivotally connected to the push-rod of the said cylinder, means for connecting the opposite end of said lever with the pull-rods of the said gear, and means for connecting the said lever with the hand brake-gear on the car body.

CLARENCE H. HOl/VARD. HARRY M. PFLAGER. l/Vitnesses:

HAL C. BELLVILLE, EDWARD \V. FURRELL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

